


A Tragedy Told in Metals: Missed It, Can't Forget It

by cronaisawriter



Series: A Tragedy Told In Metals [3]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt, Female Tony Stark, Gen, Hurt No Comfort, James "Rhodey" Rhodes is a Good Bro, Missing Scene, One Shot, Past Domestic Violence, Past Sexual Abuse, tony is techincally not here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-18 04:04:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21771457
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cronaisawriter/pseuds/cronaisawriter
Summary: Rhodey is faced with the knowledge of what he never noticed, and talks to the only other person in the same position.-You have to have read book 1 to get this
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark
Series: A Tragedy Told In Metals [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1346422
Kudos: 35





	A Tragedy Told in Metals: Missed It, Can't Forget It

**Author's Note:**

> CW: discussions of past domestic violence, sexual abuse, eating disorders and alcoholism. 
> 
> Songs:  
> [1: Luka by Suzanne Vega](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZt7J0iaUD0)
> 
> [2: Am I Wrong by Nico & Vinz](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a16S-Ve8Teo&list=PLCkYERmUg_Ss9nO6mOJQRwnHlVNwbEo07&index=154&t=0s)

James Rhodes was in his car, he really ought to drive to the base, instead, he was going the complete opposite direction. But part of him just wanted to turn around, fly back across the country and never leave his best friend's side ever. But that wasn’t practical, Toni would let him taken care of her for a little while, eventually, she’d push him away again. Not to mention he had a job and Toni had become Iron Queen and head of a company. 

Toni wasn’t the girl he carried home in his puke-covered shirt. Pepper liked to tell him that, she wasn’t a kid anymore, but he would forever see her that way. Even when he tried to tell her to act grown-up, the remorse would never leave him, especially not now. Now that he realised even when he thought she was letting him help her, he let her go into the hands of a monster for years. 

Forcing himself on the plane killed him, but right now he was driving towards SHIELD headquarters. He had to know, rather or not the only other person aware of what had gone down is as screwed up by it as he is. Anger swirled and curled inside him if he didn't put it out there, it would consume him. Letting yourself turn into the rage stored inside would leave him without the things he loved. 

Confronting a powerful person in a heavily armed covert operation was an incredibly dumb thing to do. It would likely result in nothing but throwing himself in a lion's mouth. However, he had already planned how to execute this plan. So he wasn’t going in blind. He worked with JARVIS to make his own access card and codes to the building and had memorised the layout and had a code to the upper offices. James had been around a lot of spooks at this point. He was sure, scratch that kind of sure, no one would bother him if he walked as if he belonged there. 

So that’s exactly what he did, strutted through the door as if he belonged there. He was totally a SHIELD agent, obviously. 

Sneaking in took him little time and effort. Getting inside was a breeze and no one thought twice about his presence. He walked right through all the way to the director's office. The cool he’d been hiding behind during the infiltration part of this mission fell away. Suddenly nausea flowed through him as his palms became sweaty. But he took a long breath and entered the passcode he’d stolen and walked directly into the office of one Nick Fury., reading over a pile of paper.

He looked up, and Rhodey thought he noticed a small flicker of surprise before he leaned back in his chair lacing fingers together. 

Rhodey sat down in the chair across from the man staring at him intently.

“When she was a kid, how much of it did you know,” Rhodey said, getting straight to the point. Pleasantries were not on his current agenda and Fury was accustomed to this style of communication. 

“I don’t know what you mean, which 'she' are you referring to you?” Fury asked, maintaining an annoyingly unphased expression.

“The only ‘she’ we both give a damn or at least say we give a damn about.”

“Toni,” Fury said, sitting up a little straighter.

“Of course Toni. What did you know, when did you figure it out?”

“I can assure you, I have no clue what you are referring to.”

“Don’t fuck with me, Director. If you couldn’t grasp the disaster in the Stark home. Then you shouldn't be a member of an intelligence agency. Much less the leader!” Rhodey shouted.

“Master Sergeant Rhodes. Do not come into my home and yell at me.”

“This is not about SHIELD. It happens to be the best place to find you. But that doesn't answer my question.”

“Well, considering you’ve been asking all the questions. It’s my turn, how did you get in here without tripping our security?” Fury said he leaning forward his elbows on the desk between them. 

“I’m not inept. The company keep makes me look like I am. I do have an engineering degree from MIT. And access to new stark tech. Now my turn for answers, did you know what they did to Toni?”

“Of course! Yes, I knew. You’d have to be willfully ignorant to be unable to tell what was going on there. I watched Maria stark go slowly insane. Saw a man who terrified his family, a little girl who starved and drank herself into oblivion while building bombs when she should have been listening to boy bands. That house tore at anyone unlucky enough to walk in those doors.” Fury said his voice coloured by extremely visible disgust, his eyes flashed anger. His poker face falling, what a sight. 

“Yeah. She told me, I mean you can’t see Toni and it does not seem like someone is dying in front of you.” Rhodey said his voice cracking at the end.

“It wasn’t exactly fun no.” Fury said his emotions trying to retract as he leaned backwards shoulder dropping.

“Did you know about, Stane? What he did to her?” Rhodey breathed. Even getting that close to verbalising what happened filed him soak fresh guilt and shame.

“It wasn't hard to work out Obidiah was abusing her. She was everything you would think a sexual abuse victim would. Eating disorders, panic attacks, some visible severe issues with men. Eventually, I knew but didn't accept it, I tried to pretend I didn't see it. She would never open up so I ignored it. But I mean she eventually at least sort of worked out that I knew, told me I was a better man than others for not raping her.” His voice sounded dead as he said the words. Not just a poker face, but like he didn’t even comprehend the words coming out of his mouth.

“When?”

“What what?”

“When did you guess?”

“Probably when she was 13 or 14”

“Fucking hell. You knew he hurt Toni for 8 years and you did nothing? On top of her parents abusing her, for a man with all the knowledge and power you just left a girl to live in hell. Why?”

“ You didn't do anything either, you're just as culpable as I am.”

“Toni only told me about it a few days ago. Not to mention I have nowhere near the power you have or had. ”

“But you knew about Howard and Maria. Hell, you watched what that Stone boy did. You never did anything either.”

“And I’m going to have to live with that for the rest of my life. I’ll always feel guilty.”

Fury looked at him in silence for a long minute.

“I wanted to help. But I didn’t have a clue how to take on Stane much less Howard. She never said and I never had evidence. I wasn’t the director when I figure this out. Not that I could easily take down a CEO, besides assassination, now.”

“It would be hard?” Rhodey shouted. The indignant anger at the almost calm man coursed through him like poison in his veins.

“I will always have to know I left a kid to live in terror. I can’t live that down. But I’m doing what I have to just like back then. I can’t fix anything, but life will continue on with or without you. I do not have the time or the luxury to let this bother me. Toni is not my responsibility.”

Shaking his head, Rhodey deflated and took a deep breath. Rhodey could tell he felt bad, at least somewhat. He respected how Fury had helped Toni in the past, of course, Rhodey was thankful for that. At the same time bitter and angry. Toni wasn’t going to just forget or move on from what those bastards did to her, and she needed people to back her up. But in the end, Rhodey knew it came down to him anyway. Toni and Rhodey against the world, well JARVIS too. It had been that way scene they met.

In the end, Rhodey guessed he understood. This was just the way things worked, and Fury had an empire to run. Long as he was cursed with some guilt, it proved he wasn’t entirely a heartless bastard. A wall between fury and screwing more with Toni. 

Life always goes forward, he worked, would never be there all the time. But Rhodey would never shake responsibility. Toni’s his girl and it didn’t matter if she was flying around and shooting laser beams she was his responsibility, he was always going to do his best to take care of her. 

“Thank you for your time, Director,” Rhodey said, standing to leave.

“Rhodes, You’re the only human person she fully trusts. The only one she's told about this. Don’t lose her trust ”

“Yeah,” Rhodey said nodding his head.

Sitting in his car, Rhodey pounded into the steering wheel before laying his head into it. One long shaking sobs wracked through him before sitting up taking a breath. He pulled out going to the base. 

Rhodey tried to move forward that day. Getting some flack for being late but nothing too bad. But he knew he would never scrub the image of the terrified kid or broken girl from his mind. But he also had the image of the strong woman who survived all of it too. His best friend who ran a company and built the most amazing tech. Playing with the Bots and curling into him to watch Star Trek or Doctor who.

He could never totally move on because Toni couldn’t. But he had to keep going forward. Never let them see you break. 

  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> The next thing will be Book 2 I promise! But I hope this is still good. 
> 
> Let me know what you think!


End file.
